Inside a hot and noisy Sheila Guerra Gymnasium, Class D fourth-ranked Climax-Scotts was pushed to the limit by host St. Philip. But in the end, the Panthers came through in the clutch to earn a narrow 73-68 league victory.

"I was proud of the way we handled the adversity," said Climax-Scotts senior guard Dallas Froberg. "They took a couple runs on us, but we kept our composure and really did the things we've been practicing - locking down on defense and making smart decisions."

Froberg, an All-State selection a year ago, led Climax-Scotts (11-2, 8-0 Southern Central Athletic Association) with a team-high 25 points to go with seven rebounds.

"In the second half, St. Phil tried to switch it up and we were really feeding off them," Froberg said. "We got the ball around and my teammates did great, made great decisions. Everybody played their roles and we got it done."

St. Philip junior guard Ben Swagler did everything in his power to help the Fighting Tigers (4-9, 2-6 SCAA) pull off the upset, scoring 12 points in the fourth quarter alone. He finished with a game-high 29 points to go along with five assists.

"When you play a team like Climax, they are going to score," said St. Philip coach Dino English. "And you have to roll with them. (Swagler) had a good game tonight... and he did even better kicking the ball out and trusting his teammates."

Swagler's final bucket came on a 3-pointer in the game's final minutes. But Climax-Scotts senior guard Zach Harris answered when he caught a long pass from Froberg and iced the game with a break-away layup.

"Zach Harris - you get a wide-open layup and he takes it," said Climax-Scotts coach Steve Critchlow. "He's confident. When the team is all playing aggressive, it helps... It was a nip-tuck game. St. Phil guys were scrapping for everything. You had to come strong today with it, no matter where you were."

"It took a lot of energy," Critchlow said. "We couldn't have any defensive lapses. Swagler was hitting his shots and finding his way to the backboard or three-point land. We just came out on top in a tough back-and-forth game."

Along with Swagler, St. Philip was led by junior guard Zach Nelson with 11 points, junior forward Drew Lantinga with 10 points and sophomore guard Justice Steiner with eight points.

"We had a loss tonight, but I thought it was a confidence-booster for our team and our program. It shows even though we are young, we can play when we want to play," English said. "We're getting better every week, and that's all you can ask for. This really could turn this team around. It really shows that they can play with anybody when they put their mind to it, so I'm really proud of them tonight."

Nick Buckley can be reached at nbuckley@battlecreekenquirer.com or 269-966-0652. Follow him on Twitter:@NickJBuckley